Turning Leaves and Going Deeper with Andrew Pyper

There are so many ways for writers to invest in their future career as an author.

Ultimately, as a writer, it’s your meandering pathway to follow until you get published… However, what if there were a secret in jumpstarting your career and taking the express highway to publishing, eliminating the many wrong turns along the road?

Would you want to know this secret?

Of course you would… or you should.

Besides reading author blogs, attending writing meetings or conferences, and hanging out with other writers, you could also partake in a writing retreat, especially one with a bestselling author in attendance for the majority of the weekend. An author you can pester with questions, or sit beside, while you eat delicious four-course meals, three times a day. Sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?

This past weekend I hung out with 15 other writers (some I already knew, others were a pleasant surprise of the unknown) AND Author Andrew Pyper. This guy is on the verge of becoming the next Stephen King. For both Pyper and King, they are drawn to weird and wonderful horror stories about the regular people whom are living next door to you. These two authors share similar characteristics in their writing, with nothing more dominant than demons and monsters.

Do I write horror stories?

Not exactly, but I do love to write mystery, suspense and thriller stories, which I consider to be horror’s first cousins. Therefore, I was delighted to find out Andrew Pyper would be hanging out at the Fern Resort in Orillia for the weekend at the Turning Leaves Writing Retreat (run by Writescape). I signed up, not only to grab the opportunity to learn more about the writing craft and techniques, but also to have a chance to question Andrew Pyper again (this is my sixth workshop with him… and I bet, he’s starting to think he has a stalker. Mwhahahahahaha!).

Andrew’s workshop, “Way In, Way Out, Way Deeper and Way Forward” was amazing, even though I’ve heard most of what he said before at previous workshops, he never seems to disappoint me. He uses unique examples to help writers recognize the high concept in their novel, and quite often he goes around the room asking for specific examples from the participant’s own work… which is brilliant, because it helps the writer in a big way, by finding their ways in and out, and ways to take the story deeper (lower and lower, bad beyond bad, where the scary shit lives inside your head) and ways to find the overall high concept of their story.

What is High Concept?

It is your story premise pushed to the fullest extent. You need to make it the MOST POTENT version as you can. What’s the secret to that? Ahhh, I can’t tell you that. You needed to be at the retreat to hear all the BIG secrets, such as the SIX things that help you plot the story easier, or the FOUR tips on finding the “aboutness” of the tale, or knowing whether your mid-point in the book is working or not. Plus, there was bonus talk about using subplots, weaving them through the story, providing different arcs or links to the ultimate through-line story. Really, all I can say is YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN THERE!

When you attend the Turning Leaves Retreat, you also get a chance to strengthen your writing voice by participating in voluntary morning and afternoon creativity sessions with the Writescape team of Ruth E. Walker & Gwynn Scheltema. As I’ve mentioned before, I hate participating in writing exercises and I figured if I set my expectations low, I wouldn’t be disappointed if nothing magical happened for me at all. So, I attended every creativity session with little hope in learning anything new or walking away with anything valuable, because I feel I don’t think fast enough, nor do I write fast enough to compete with the other writers (basically, I don’t want to appear dumb in a circle of brilliance).

AND that’s where I got it ALL wrong.

It’s not a competition at all. Fifteen writers had fifteen different voices and ended up with fifteen different ways to tell a story. Each of us read our new snippets of glowing light and beautiful darkness, and we basked in the happiness of producing something new for our novel, short story or poem. These were exercises to stretch our brains and attempt things we never would have tried had we not been in that room bonding together over a tiny little writing exercise. Not to mention, every single writer felt they were learning a new little piece of a puzzle about the inner workings of each of their new writing tribe. We shared. We listened. We supported one another. We became instant friends. We were definitely inspired. These were life-changing moments for all of us.

Bottom line: Writing retreats are fantastic ways to escape your busy life and finally put a few words on the page, BUT, if you take that little leap of faith in yourself, you can not only receive expert advice from a bestselling author like Andrew Pyper, but you can also surprise yourself by writing something amazing, something new. PLUS, you can bond with new friends over a passion you will take with you to “FOREVERNESS”.

NOTE: The next Writescape writing retreat happens in April 2019 and we will be nestled in cosy little cabins along beautiful Rice Lake. For further information, go to: www.writescape.ca. Registration opens on December 1st for a three-day writing retreat or a five-day option to stay and write without interruption. I highly recommend this event.

SPECIAL NOTE: Andrew Pyper’s newest book, “The Homecoming” will be released on February 26, 2019. It sounds intriguing and scary, of course. I’m looking forward to picking up a copy to add to my Pyper section in my home library. You should too.